Sarcator : "The Ones We Follow"

This Swedish trio is thrashing out this time around. By the second song, there is more rock n roll swagger as the chords ring out with a more western feel. Then they got full throttle while still flirting with reverb-heavy rock guitars. It brings Kvelertak to mind. I am not sure I would call this black n roll, though it is heading in that direction, and the vocals are unrepentant in their attitude and snarling. If it were an entire album like the rowdiness summoned on "You Gotta Possess Me" I would get bored, but hopefully this exorcism of energy allows them to approach the rest of the album with more dynamics and nuance. 

The western sounds that open "In Search of Oblivion' do resurface to add more atmosphere to the furious rocking, but it is mainly focused on the uptempo thrash rock.. These elements they are experimenting with should have been given more space in a manner that would hold greater bearing on the direction they were heading on "Rotting Chapels," and it would have been more intersting. Not sure why Western music is being blended with black metal with such frequency in the past few years, but that is where we are at.

"Bleeding Ages" brings these elements to this album for the first time, adding a spooky post-punk vibe. At various points in the album, these western sounds clang out in a manner that evokes a rockabilly feel. I would not be surprised if the Cramps were an influence on them. At times, the feral energy gets the best of them, "Volatile Insight " being one of those moments. Their fascination with rootsy American music goes so far that they bust out slide guitar on " Ain't Fit To Live".The more deliberate beat is what sets this song apart. It gives things an almost Aerosmith feel.  

The sung vocals on "Wasteland Strider' are an improvement and a needed dynamic shift. Midway into this song, it takes an awesome turn into a cool groove, the best song of the album so far."Wanderlust" shows none of the restraint or melody the previous song had. Overall, this is a great direction for the band and a step forward. I will give it a 9.5 and see if it grows on me. It drops October 30th on Reigning Phoenix Music.

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Sarcator : "Swarming Angels & Flies"

 This album starts off as pretty straightforward thrashing black metal. Coming from Sweden this is not surprising, as it's not unlike Watain's rawer more feral moments. The first two songs find the vocals carrying a similar snarl. Energetically they are also very similar in their urgent attack, though the guitar playing begins to get a little more melodic as the second song progresses. The buzzing guitar driving the title track gives way to the unrelenting almost punk drumming that collides with it. To their credit at least it is not just droning blast beats and is something more riff-oriented., The emphasis however is placed more upon being in your face than offering a wider range of dynamics. This lack of atmosphere also causes it to not be as dark as what I normally want from black metal. Watain who does similar opens the door for a more ritualistic throb that is missing here.

"The Deep Ends" has the hookiest riff so far. While it still gallops into bad with a similar snarl coming from the vocals, there is more of a traditional metal influence simmering under the razor-sharp jab of the guitars. You can hear the growl of the bass cutting through the guitar on this one which gives it more punch. Things do not begin to switch up sonically until they open "Where the Void Begins" with a clean guitar intro. The verse is allowed to groove more. Stormclouds roll in from the chords to darker the song, "The Undercurrent" reverts back to the rabid thrashing that album opened up with, but things get more interesting on "Closure" which has more of a gloomy swagger mixing the wild west with post-punk tension. It's the first totally original moment the band has allowed themselves to create. They do build it up into more of the stomping thrash that has been their signature. It is an instrumental, as their vocalist does not attempt to sing over it, and his scowling narrative would be too heavy-handed for it. 

There is a marginally darker feel to "Unto Sepulchres" which is the last song before they include three covers. So this last original finds them in a taunt uptempo thrash riffing. It reminds me a little of Kreator. The three covers they pick are very telling in regards to what this band is about as they are thrash, punk, and death metal. Anti-cimex's "Dogfight" is the first up and it sounds very Watain if we are talking about when they are in their rawer punk mode. It's always been funny to me that Brazil's Sarcofago has left such a big impression on so many Swedish bands, but their influence is undeniable on black metal. Sadus' "Torture" is perhaps even more obscure than the previous song. They keep a raw tone that does it justice. I'll give this album an 8.5, it's well done, when I am in the mood for this style of black metal I am personally more prone to listen to Watain as they have a wider dynamic range, but if you want something punkier and thrashy this album is worth checking out. This is dropping on Century Media. 

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